European Policy Coordination in the Bretton Woods Institutions and ways to increase its coherence with European development goals

Despite the large role that the European Union (EU) and its member states play in the disbursement of official development assistance globally, coordination among European member states in the organisation of their bilateral aid programmes is relatively limited. This complicates the ability of the members to act in a cohesive, coordinated manner in international financial institutions that play a development role, in particular, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank. Leverage and visibility of the EU globally, and in international institutions in particular, is below its potential.